That Moment
by TheEagerScribbler
Summary: Draco Malfoy was what most civilized human beings referred to as a jerk. Oh sure, he had glorious hair and the perfect nose, and Harry could swear that he found some way to place a compulsion charm on anyone who looked into his eyes, but he was the sort of guy who would trip you and then laugh at your clumsiness. Harry had no tolerance for people like that. Drarry.


Author's note: Hi guys! It's been a while since I've written anything for Harry Potter. I think I might still have been writing under ForeverLily (Before that I went by Lillyflower's revenge, but it's been a few years). Drarry isn't usually my thing, but it's one of those things where if you're in the fandom long enough it becomes a right of passage. So this one is dedicated to my friend who ships drarry and has dragged me with her...just this once. I guess it was bound to rub off eventually. So here it is folks-I've finally written my mandatory drarry fic. I rarely write Romance, so I might be a little rusty. I hope you like it! If you're a reader of my Yugioh story, _Higher Stakes_ , I'm really sorry about the wait for the update. I promise that I am working on it. It will get done sometime this century! I am just about ready to post chapter 24 as of 10/26/2016.

 _Disclaimer:_ I don't own Harry Potter or any recognizable characters or places and I'm not making money off of this story.

Dedication: For my best friend, who is a hopeless Drarry fan. Her work inspired this piece.

-TheEagerScribbler

Love is messy

"What are we going to do!" Hermione stormed into the room and slammed her books down in the spot directly across from Harry, interrupting his thoughts.

"I dunno, but apparently it involves studying..."Harry shrugged.

Hermione smacked his arm. "Don't be a smart arse Harry, you know what I mean."

"What is it Hermione?" Hermione rarely let herself get this flustered over anything but Ron or an exam.

"It's Malfoy." That was supposed to be news? He'd been causing trouble since the moment he walked in. "He's at it again! I caught him tormenting another first year."

Harry didn't need to hear the rest of the story because it was always the same, although he was mildly interestested in hearing which hex she used this time.

"What'd you do?"

"He called the first year a mudblood and then tried to snap his wand, so I gave him boils and covered him in mud. I imagine it will take about 6 hours for him to get rid of them. I tweaked this variation myself."

Knowing that Draco got what he deserved was highly satisfying, but yet... Harry almost felt bad for him. He couldn't identify why exactly, except that he wouldn't wish the curse end of Hermione's wand on anyone, even an arrogant, obnoxious, spoiled, brat.

"Good."

Ron came in plopped down in the chair next to Hermione, propping his feet up on the coffee table. Hermione sighed with frustration and Harry had to hold back his laughter at the familiar scene. "Honestly Ronald, I'm sure your mother taught you better manners than that!"

He scoffed. "What's the big deal? Lay off, will you?" Harry braced himself for the upcoming explosion, but it never came.

"Whatever, do what you want."

Harry decided that it was his job to try to defuse the tension between his two friends before it really did erupt. Lately things had been really tense between them lately and who knew which argument would be the last straw. Harry grabbed some of the chocolate frogs that he had stashed in his bag and threw one to Ron and one to Hermione. "Here."

"But I don't-" Hermione protested.

"Trust me, I think we could all use one." Harry reassured her.

"I can't. It's...moving." She looked at it with disgust and threw it to Ron. Harry refrained from pointing out that she could make it stop moving if she wanted to-she was a talented witch after all.

"More for me," Ron bit the frog in half.

"So you'll never guess what Malfoy did today." Harry said casually.

"What'd he do this time?" Ron asked.

"He broke up with Pansy Parkinson."

Ron and Hermione stared at him confusion. "Why should we care?" Ron asked.

Harry popped a chocolate frog in his mouth to give himself time to formulate what he wanted to say, because in all honesty he didn't know why it mattered. "It matters because he's going to in a particularly nasty mood tomorrow and sits right next to us in potions."

Ron didn't get it but Hermione did. Her face grew grim. "It's going to mean more work for prefects, isn't it?"

"Yep. He's probably gonna take it on some poor first years like he did earlier today."

"I guess we'll just have to be ready, won't we?" Ron said.

Although it technically wasn't his job Harry also kept an eye on the younger students. Something about the idea of them being picked on by someone bigger and more powerful than himself reminded him of Dudley tormenting him when he was small. That was how he found himself with his wand pointed at Draco the next day. "Let the first year go Malfoy!"

Draco laughed, even though his eyes never left his target. "Or what? You'll disarm me? You're about as threatening as my mother's kitten, so why don't you and your friends go play with a ball of yarn or something while I take care of business?"

"I've faced the Dark Lord four times; you don't scare me. Let the kid go Malfoy, or else."

"Or else what?"

"Or else I'll-"

Out of nowhere someone yelled "Expelliarmus!" Harry looked up to see Neville, who looked nervous but determined.

"What are you doing mate? You trying to get yourself expelled?"

"Don't you see what Malfoy's doing?"

"A harmless jinx is one thing, but you looked like you were about to duel him! Come, let's go you two." Neville grabbed the trembling first year's hand, and then grabbed Harry's before briskly walking down the hallway.

Hermione and Ron, who had been previously chatting, stopped and stared at the trio. "Why is Neville dragging you away like you were about to get into a fight?" Ron asked.

"That's the problem. He was about to get into a duel with Malfoy! I didn't want him to get expelled so I disarmed him."

"Hate to say it mate, but Neville's right. As much as I'd like to see you duel Malfoy, getting expelled only helps him. How else are you going to keep tabs on him?" Ron and Harry had suspected Malfoy of plotting something for several weeks now, although Hermione had yet to be convinced. He seemed off somehow. Lately Malfoy had been making mistakes where he normally wouldn't and seemed anxious, which was bizarre coming from the usually cocky and self assured pureblood heir to the Malfoy fortune. What if Voldemort had finally recruited him?

Hermione sighed in relief and began shooting dirty looks towards Harry. "Thank you Neville. These two always seem to be in detention for something, but expulsion is something else entirely." She turned to Harry with a hand on her hip, a posture that he had learned from watching Mrs. Weasley that meant that he was in for a scolding. "What would you do if you were expelled Harry? I can't believe that you'd ever do something so stupid!"

Why didn't they get it? It was all in self-defense! "There are worse things than expulsion Hermione. I couldn't just stand there and do nothing while he was hurting a first year!"

"You could have gotten a teacher."

"And have his father buy his way out of trouble?" Ron scoffed. "'Mione, you're a muggle so maybe you wouldn't know-"

"I'm a muggle born, not a muggle." She corrected.

"Right." He acknowledged. "Anyway, here in the wizarding world it all goes back to money and house loyalty. Malfoy has both. If we go to a teacher one of two things are going to happen: either the first year will get blamed or it'll be ignored all together. "

"That's horrible! Why does house loyalty matter outside of Hogwarts?"

Ron shrugged. "I dunno. It's just how things are I guess. There's not many of us compared to muggles, right? We all just kind of know each other. Merlin, now that I think about it all of us purebloods and loads of half-bloods are all related to each other."

"So that makes you and Malfoy cousins huh? That explains a lot actually, like the way you-" Harry started.

Ron elbowed him. "Knock it off Harry. Don't even joke about it! It probably _is_ true. Both the Weasleys and Pruitts are pureblood families, you know."

"I'm pretty sure we're third cousins at least." Neville said helpfully. "I think I saw something in about it in a book that my grandmother made me read when I was little. She used to make me research our family history a lot." When he saw the questioning look on Harry and Hermione's faces he shrugged. "It's actually pretty common for purebloods to be taught their family history."

"Well, it's nice to know that we have some extended family that isn't completely crazy." Ron patted Neville on the back and the boy blushed madly. He wasn't used to that sort of attention. While Neville was generally well liked, he didn't have any close friends.

"Aren't we getting a little off topic?" Hermione interrupted. "You shouldn't attack unless you have no other choice. In order to protect yourself from getting expelled you should always act defensively! What good can you do if you get expelled or your wand gets broken? You'll be far more vulnerable outside of Hogwarts."

"Fine." Harry muttered. "If you can promise that you won't hex the next person who calls you...you know what I won't start any fights with Malfoy." Harry held out his hand for Hermione to shake.

Hermione looked at the hand for a moment and then shook it. "Agreed." _

When they sat down in the great hall for dinner that night Harry thought that Draco was looking at him. He didn't seem to be glaring at him either. Weird. Harry spent all of dinner trying not to look while Hermione was briefing him on what she thought that tomorrow's transfiguration test would be about. For some reason, he just couldn't concentrate knowing that those icy eyes were staring at him.

"Brandywine's theory of multiples states…Harry, are you listening?" Hermione tapped her fingers impatiently. For some reason, he was distracted enough to ignore the savory smelling chicken and his best friend's obsession with grades, and that bothered him. Why was he letting Malfoy of all people get to him like that?

"Yeah, I'm listening." He turned his attention back to her. Really he was more concerned with

"Ok then what was I saying?"

Harry managed to guess correctly because it was the last thing McGonagall talked about before she dismissed class. "The Theory of Multiples?"

Her eyebrows shot up. "Very good Harry. I didn't think you were paying attention. Unlike a certain _someone_ that we know." Ron was entirely focused on stuffing his face with roasted potatoes.

Ron stopped scarfing down his food just long enough to ask, "What was that?"

"My point exactly." She said tersely.

Harry heard a pair of familiar footsteps approach them. They were quick and light, but not like a girl's. There was obvious weight to it, he just wasn't stomping the way that some of his friends unknowingly did. He also noticed that the shoes were high quality dress shoes. The rubber sounded subtly different than regular shoes-he had learned to recognize the difference when he was hiding from Dudley before he started Hogwarts. Only a pureblood would bother to buy such expensive shoes when you could find nearly identical looking shoes for half the price in Diagon Alley, and he knew of only one pureblood whose steps sounded like that. "You have no one but yourself to blame for keeping such distasteful company Granger. You might be a _mudblood"_ Draco spat, "but even you could do better than hanging around a blood traitor and The Boy Who Couldn't Transfigure His Way Out of a Paper Bag."

"You mean like _you_?"

Draco snorted. "I wouldn't be friends with you if you paid me Granger. I'm merely saying that it might be to your benefit to find someone with more class who is willing to overlook your major character flaws. Who knows, maybe you'll even be spared…" he suddenly looked stricken, like he wasn't supposed to say anything. He quickly recovered and tried to cover up his slip up. Harry wondered he why even bothered. Just about everyone knew that if Draco wasn't a full-fledged Death Eater he was destined to become one. "...when people come to their senses and finally leave the decision making to the better sort."

Not this again. Harry rolled his eyes. "Bug off Malfoy. Just because your Daddy takes orders from Voldemort and your face is so pointy I could write an essay with it does not give you the write to treat us like flobberworms!"

"At least I don't need a scar to obtain influence," Draco spat.

"But you still need a tattoo?" Harry countered.

Neither of them had a chance to counter further because Pansy Parkinson walked up to the Gryffindor table. She looked at Harry, Ron, and Hermione like she smelled something rotten before quickly softening her expression to something less hostile for Draco. Her lips quirked upwards slightly when she looked at him and then they stretched into her usual smirk. "Is Potty being stupid again?" Something about Parkinson made her more annoying than usual. Maybe it was that high-pitched voice or the way she practically threw herself as Malfoy. Harry shuddered. Anyone with self-esteem low enough to want him could have him.

"My business here is finished. Let's go Pansy. I believe we have an appointment." The two walked out of the hall together, finally leaving Harry to enjoy his meal in relative peace. He knew that with so many students there in the Great Hall complete silence was too much to ask for, but at the very least he shouldn't have to put up with obnoxious Slytherins before pudding. Was that really so much to ask?

"You alright 'Mione?" Ron asked with cheeks puffed out with food.

"I'm fine. Malfoy is just an insulting prick. I'm a muggleborn Ron, I've had to develop a thick skin."

Suddenly Ron's eyebrows shot up. "Do you know what I just realized Harry?" Harry merely shook his head no. "He called her a..." He stopped when he saw the dirty glare that Hermione shot him he caught himself "...a you know what. She didn't even raise her wand once!"

"Damn, that means that I can't hex him either." Harry swore under his breath. He was hoping that she'd break her promise so that he could have a go at him.

"Ron, he uses that word all the time," she pointed out. "I can't lose my temper every time he says it. Nothing would ever get done!"

"That's never stopped you before," Ron muttered.

"Shut up Ron," Harry muttered.

The moment that Ron opened his mouth again Harry could see the impending argument that was about to occur and wanted no part of it. Instead of listening he began to shove roasted carrots into his mouth with gusto. It hardly mattered that he was eating too fast to taste them-that was better than having to listen to another argument between his two best friends.

Hermione snatched the slice of apple pie from his plate and squished it between her fingers. Then she daintily wiped it onto a napkin.

"Hey what was that for?"

"I heard that Ronald. I do not always lose my temper!"

"Why do girls always have to have such bloody good hearing!"

"Maybe you shouldn't be saying things that you don't want to be heard at all!" When she raised the pitch of her voice Harry decided to excuse himself. All of the shouting was starting to give him a headache and he already got enough of that from Voldemort.

He managed to slip out without catching anybody's notice except Luna. At least he wouldn't have to worry too much about her. Luna might seem crazy, but she understood people better than most people realized. She had a knack for finding Harry when he needed company and helped him to escape when he needed it. There was a reason that she made it into Ravenclaw afterall-she was smart enough to know that if Harry left without telling anyone he probably did it on purpose.

For weeks Harry had had a sneaking suspicion that Draco was up to something but had no proof. Maybe this would be his chance to find out what he was up to. Harry took out the map and quickly scanned it for Malfoy. It was easy because most students were still finishing their meals, so the only ones left were Filch, a few students who he hoped were just snogging in the broom closets, a few professors in their rooms, Pansy Parkinson who was in the Slytherin Common Room, and Malfoy, who was wandering the halls of the third floor. "Found you!" Harry muttered under his breath

He didn't have his cloak on him, but he wouldn't need it if he was quiet enough. Fred and George always managed well enough without it. Why couldn't he? It was all so suspiciously simple. There stairs were still in the right position and nobody was wandering the halls, not even Filch's cat, which struck Harry as odd.

There countless roos on that floor but Harry rarely ever found himself on this part of the floor. Some of the rooms would move locations and others were covered in cobwebs. Nobody knew what kind of magical creature would have taken residence in those room so Harry decided to leave them. Malfoy wouldn't go into a room with an unknown threat he was just too smart for that.

After a while he hears a large bang. Harry charged down the hallway and rounds the corner into a room. He just barely dodges a spell and then he felt the whole room shift.

"Potter!" And then he ducked a spell that was clearly aimed at him.

"Rehearsing for your Master, Malfoy?" Malfoy fired a particularly nasty cutting curse that skimmed the side of Harry's arm. "That bloody hurt!" Harry yelled.

"Leave Potter." Harry tried to open the door in case they needed to take the argument outside, except there was a stone wall on the outside.

Malfoy pointed at the wall and yelled "Bombarda!", exposing the room to the outside. "Out!" Had Malfoy gone mad? Surely he didn't actually expect him to jump through the newly created window to leave.

"You wish. I'm not going anywhere and neither are you, from the looks of it."

"This is all your fault! Things would be normal if it weren't for you!"

Harry just stared at Malfoy. "Excuse me for not dying!"

"You should have gone and done us a favor by letting Voldemort kill you last summer!" How did Malfoy know about that? Had his father said something?

"Why?" Harry didn't know exactly what he was asking

"Because it's your fault my father-"

"Your father what, Malfoy?" Harry interrupted.

"You're the reason my Father is a shadow of the man that he used to be! You brought _him_ back, and now if my father doesn't...grovel," He spat, "he'll be punished, and so will mother."

He could've heard a pin drop. The implication suddenly hit Harry that Malfoy was human just like he was. His father may have been cold, but Draco honestly seemed to like his father, and judging from their meeting in Diagon Alley he was protective of his mother too. It occurred to him that Draco might not actually want to be a death eater. There was an assumption that boys follow their fathers in the wizarding world- Harry was constantly being compared to James, Neville was always held up to his parents' example, and Ron was expected to struggle the way that his parents had. No one even considered that Draco might want something else, not even Draco himself. "You don't have to do it Malfoy."

"Yes I do. If don't they'll die."

"If you they'll die. Voldemort-"

Malfoy cringed at the name. "For Merlin's sake Potter show some respect!"

Harry ignored him. "Voldemort will kill them for something. He's sadistic, and I doubt he's entirely sane at this point if he's...never mind. Make up your own mind for once Malfoy!"

"I can't believe that this is coming from Dumbledore's puppet! Do you honestly think so many dangerous creatures and people could enter without his knowledge?"

"Take that back Malfoy. There's no way that he'd try to have me killed!"

"Who said anything about having you killed? He's either trying to train you or he's really gone senile. Father and I just can't seem to decide which one!"

"Shut up! You don't know anything. You're just death eater scum!"

"I am not!"

"Prove it! Show me your arm!"

Harry was surprised when Malfoy actually showed his arm and it was free of the dark mark. Suddenly guilt shot through Harry. He was wrong, and on top of all of that he had called him 'scum' almost immediately after telling him that he could choose something else. Harry knew from classes with Malfoy that he was actually pretty smart, almost as smart as Hermione, and he could make the right decision if someone actually gave him a chance. Had anyone ever given Malfoy the chance to become something other than a a devious, snobbish, bullying Slytherin? It made Harry wonder who he would have become if he had been sorted in Slytherin.

"I shouldn't have said that," Harry said regretfully.

Malfoy became quiet for a moment. He quickly covered his arm back up as though he was ashamed of something. "Doesn't bother me," he said. "I've heard much worse. It's what happens when people become jealous of their betters."

Harry wanted to say something about Malfoy being a narcissistic prat but he bit his tongue. He was trying to be nice. How else was he going to convince Draco that becoming a death eater wasn't the only way survive? Harry sensed that his side could use more Slytherins, although he didn't like any of the ones that he knew. "That doesn't mean that it's okay to say that kind of stuff to anyone. You didn't choose to be sorted into Slytherin, and even if you did no one deserves to be treated like that. You can't help being a Malfoy any more than I can help being a Potter!" Or a wizard, he thought, remembering how his own relatives treated him because he had the nerve to be born a wizard.

"You might as well be a Hufflepuff," he sneered. "That's just how the world works."

"But it's not! At least, it doesn't have to be. Look, even if you don't trust Dumbledore you have to that realize that serving the dark lord could be a death sentence. If you fail you might outlive your usefulness. If he doesn't win you lose your wealth, your reputation, and your position in society. You might even go to Azkaban! Voldemort will completely wreck society as we know it, and do you know who will be at the top?"

"We'll be at the top!" Malfoy yelled. Harry's eyebrows shot up. He had never seen him lose this much control before today. Purebloods were all about control. "I don't see what you're getting at. He fighting for a world in which we take back our rightful place in society!"

"No Malfoy, he's fighting for a world in which he's immortal and he'll be at the top. In _his_ world you're just supposed to be grateful that he's allowing you to live in it- that's your so called privilege Malfoy." He paused for a moment to let the impact sink in and then reminded him "It doesn't have to be that way. There are people who can help you if you're willing to let them."

"I'm choosing the right side Potter. You wouldn't know because you apparently have no survival instinct at all, but the right side is the one that will allow me to live. The Dark Lord is the most powerful wizard in the world, but let's suppose that he does lose. Your side won't kill me. If your side loses you _will_ die. I want to live! My parents have to live! If I don't make the right choice both of my parents are going to die!"

"What kind of life will it be Malfoy? Do you really want to spend the rest of your life hoping that you don't accidentally say or do something to yourself killed?" Harry found himself starting to yell too. "The people that I know will help your parents too Malfoy, although I can't promise that they'll like them. You don't have to live that way if you don't want to. You have the power choose!"

Malfoy lowered his wand and pursed his lips in consideration. Had he actually managed to convince the Pureblood poster boy to consider switching sides? He slid to the ground and Harry followed suite. For a moment Malfoy stared at his arm and then Harry realized that he was looking at the spot where the spot would be, maybe imagining a future with the dark mark. What wouldn't he give to be able to see inside of Draco's brain in that moment, to finally understand what was going through that boy's head.

"If you really think about it, you have the most to lose in either scenario. I'm not saying that being smart, rich, and attractive gives you the right to step all over people, but it does put you in a position of privilege. If side with the Dark Lord you'll be losing it either way. The only difference is that if one side wins it'll come with the torture and if the other side wins it comes with jail time, or at a least an extremely large fine," these were wizards, and he had to keep in mind that he was talking to a Malfoy. "If you side with us you might not be able to treat muggle borns any different from the rest of us peasants, but at least you'll still have all of those things."

Malfoy was silent for another moment before saying, "You think I'm attractive?"

Why was Malfoy focusing on the wrong part of the conversation? For once Harry was at a loss for what to say. Instead of saying one of the many things that he could have said he was only able to blurt, "Doesn't everyone?"

In an entirely un-Malfoy like gesture he shrugged. "Apparently not. When I asked Daphne to the Yule Ball she said no because she was waiting for someone who was tall dark and handsome."

Harry snorted. "You have a lot of issues Malfoy, but your looks aren't one of them."

"You're not a peasant Potter." Malfoy said suddenly.

"Huh?"

"I might not like you, but I'm not blind. Your family is pretty old, and thanks to your grandfather you must be quite wealthy, and even before him you weren't exactly poor either. They've always had some influence, and if you knew how to handle yourself properly, associated with the right people, and took advantage of your intelligence and good looks you'd be almost on par with the Malfoys. Your status as the boy who lived and the Potter heir is enough to make up for any impurities in your blood."

Why couldn't Harry stop blushing? He should be angry because he knew that Malfoy was referring to his mother when he talked about "impurities" in his blood! "Leaved my mother out of this!"

"For Merlin's sake Potter that was supposed to be a compliment!"

"Whatever," Harry snapped. After taking a calming breath he tried to redirect the conversation. He didn't want to keep sitting on the floor- it was cool, but very uncomfortable. "You're missing the point."

"No, I'm not," instead of sounding as annoyed as Harry expected him to he sounded thoughtful. "If you are on the winning side you'll have at least as much influence as the Malfoys. If we throw our support behind you and you do win the war we'll be in a position to benefit."

Harry stood up and held out a hand to Malfoy. "So?"

"Do you swear that you'll help me even if my father doesn't switch allegiances?"

Harry nodded. "Yes, we'll help you. I know that you don't like professor Dumbledore, but I know that he won't leave you to the Death Eaters."

Malfoy took Harry's proffered hand and stood up, facing Harry. "We should meet somewhere and discuss things. If you're going to win you can't continue on like this," he vaguely gestured at Harry. "I have a lot to teach you. I could probably buy out the three broomsticks for the afternoon so that we'll have privacy."

"Wouldn't that attract attention?"

"Not for the right price," he smirked. For some reason Harry found that smirk entirely too convincing.

For some reason Harry suddenly lost control of his brain and his mouth and the words, "It's a date" slipped out. Harry realized what it must have sounded like to a wizard and opened his mouth to backtrack, but Malfoy got there first.

He smirked devilishly and started to walk away. "You wish."

"It's just a muggle expression!" He protested.

He turned around. "Sure it is. However, I suppose that we can revisit the topic when you win the war."

"I wasn't actually asking you on a date. I don't like you like _that_."

"You mean you spend all that time staring at me because you're jealous? Weaslette was more subtle. Even if I'm wrong, and I'm not...I'm a Malfoy. I'll having you falling head over heels in love by Christmas."

"It's November 2nd."

"Exactly."

"That's never going to happen." There was no way in hell that Harry Potter could ever love a Malfoy. His best friends were a muggleborn and a blood traitor, and the closest thing that he had to an uncle was a werewolf. His father had spent the past six years trying to kill him for Merlin's sake, and even if Malfoy was trying to cast of his father's influence he was still a vain, narcissistic git, and there was no way that he could love someone like that even if loved boys, which he didn't. Girls were always gushing over how glamorous female celebrities, so why couldn't he admire the most attractive boy in school?

"Please, you're halfway there already."

"Shut up Malfoy."

"If you're not in love with me then why are you blushing?"

"I'm leaving. Owl me when you're ready to meet. I'll have to talk to Dumbledore about it."

"I should have known you'd go straight to him," scowled the annoying blond.

Harry reminded himself to not strangle the boy he was trying to save. "What do you want me to say Malfoy? He's been fighting Voldemort since before we were born and he's the most powerful wizard in the world."

"Fair enough Potter. I demand to be there while you do it."

There he went again, being an entitled brat again. How could Malfoy ever think that Harry could be in love with someone like that? "Fine. Now, let's focus on trying to get out of here."

"Are you a wizard or not?" Malfoy picked up his wand and summoned a broom from the broom shed. "Accio broom!"

Harry smacked his own forehead. Why didn't he think of that? That was how he survived the dragon in the tri-wizard tournament. "Get on Potter."

"I'll just summon my own."

"It's generally not a good idea to summon things from such a long distance. I don't want to be here when you try it again. Now I repeat, get on," he ordered.

Harry grudgingly got on the broom only because he knew that Malfoy wouldn't shut about him being a coward or something if he refused. Together they whizzed out of the window. He expected to begin his descent shortly but Malfoy kept flying.

"Where are we going?"

"Over the great lake."

"Why?"

"I've never ridden a broom with anyone before. It's hard to control. Just give me a few minutes to slowly descend." Harry sighed and just decided to enjoy the flight. There was nothing that he enjoyed more than the sensation of the air whooshing past him and looking down at the landscapes below. On a sunny day like this they reminded him of a painting. The grounds were vivid, green, and dotted with trees and students around the sparkling waters of the lake.

By the time they landed Harry realized that Malfoy's explanation was bull. He was a great flyer and clearly knew what he was doing. "You were lying."

"So, you enjoyed the ride didn't you?"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"I told you that a month was all it'll take."

"What does that have to do with everything?"

"Everything." Draco smiled this time, a real, genuine smile. Draco saw a stray firstie with a Slytherin tie and offered him 5 galleons. "Hey, you over there with the teeth. Take this back and don't tell anyone that you saw us together." He dropped the money into the boy's hand. The intimidated boy nodded and then ran off with the broom.

"Come Potter, the sooner we speak to the headmaster the better. Lesson number 1: Never assume that you can a secret for long. While you think you're being all clever and secretive someone may have already figured it out and are waiting for the perfect time to use it against you."

"I thought Slytherins are all about secrets."

"We are when it's not ours." Together the two headed towards the headmaster's office and harry hoped that he'd be able to keep his promise to Malfoy. He might not like him, but for some reason the idea of Malfoy dying made him uncomfortable. Maybe it was because deep down he knew that the Order could really use someone like Malfoys on their side. They could always use more allies, and Slytherin allies were hard to come by. For some reason, he got the feeling that something big was going to happen soon and they needed all of the people that they could get, even if they were arrogant, narcissistic purebloods.

Author's Note:

Hi guys! This story is finally done! I've been working on it on and off for almost a year! It's fun to write about the initial stages of attraction, especially since most fanfictions seem to focus on the stage of attraction where the people being shipped are head over heels. Even though they briefly talk about the beginnings of the relationship they tend to write about the destination, not the journey. I think the journey can be just as fun to read and is just as important.

Thanks for reading!

-TheEagerScribbler


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